Introduction

12.197. During recent years, the nuclear industry, together with NRC, has been implementing plans to manage severe accidents. By accident management is meant the innovative use of various resources, systems, and actions to prevent or mitigate a severe accident. Although such accidents are “beyond design basis” and would involve some degree of core melting, an understanding of the various possible accident mechanisms can permit the development of strategies to control the release of radionuclides to the environment. For example, the Three Mile Island accident could have been prevented by proper operator action, but once it progressed, it could have been better managed if needed strategies had been developed previously.

12.198. A severe accident management program consists of several dif­ferent elements.

1. Information and analysis

2. Supporting instrumentation

3. Accident management strategy development

4. Equipment modification

5. Personnel training

These are interrelated and may be expressed somewhat differently. Our primary purpose here is to identify the features needed for a severe accident program.